Murtaugh partner Michelle Generaux named OC Leadership Awards nominee

Murtaugh LLP said Co-Managing Partner Michelle R. Generaux was named a nominee for the 2026 OC Leadership Awards and profiled in Business by LA Times Studios. The recognition spotlights her work on M&A, private equity sales and ownership succession for architecture and engineering firms, including deals that affect licensure, projects and leadership transitions.

Why it matters: - The nomination underscores Michelle Generaux’s profile in Orange County’s legal and business community. - The recognition also reflects continued demand for legal counsel on mergers, private equity sales and ownership succession in architecture and engineering firms. - Murtaugh LLP’s design-professionals practice is getting added visibility through the award nomination and magazine profile.

What happened: - Murtaugh LLP announced that Co-Managing Partner Michelle R. Generaux was named a nominee for the 2026 OC Leadership Awards. - Business by LA Times Studios profiled Generaux in the October 2026 edition of Business by LA Times Studios. - The awards recognize Orange County executives whose work has shaped their organizations and the regional business community. - Generaux was previously selected in August for Business by LA Times Studios’ 2026 Private Equity and M&A Visionaries list.

The details: - The profile focuses on Generaux’s work in mergers and acquisitions, private equity sales and internal ownership succession for design professional firms. - Murtaugh LLP said the profile highlights Generaux’s recent representation of an architectural firm in a significant asset acquisition. - The profile also covers her role as lead counsel in the sale of a contracting firm to a private equity buyer. - Marin T. Bradshaw, Co-Managing Partner of Murtaugh LLP, said architecture and engineering transactions must account for licensure, active projects and the people carrying the work forward. - Bradshaw said Generaux structures transactions with that full picture in view, and the design community in Orange County relies on her judgment. - Generaux served as Murtaugh LLP’s sole Managing Partner for 10 years before moving into her current co-managing role with Bradshaw. - Outside transactions, Generaux serves as outside general counsel to multiple architecture and engineering firms. - In that role, she negotiates contracts with counterparties that include Fortune 500 companies. - Generaux also advises on multi-jurisdiction licensing that helps clients expand into new states. - She speaks at industry events hosted by the American Institute of Architects and the American Council of Engineering Companies. - Generaux is president and a board member of the Notre Dame Club of Orange County. - She founded Notre Dame Professionals of Orange County and has grown the network to more than 140 members. - She earned her B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and her J.D., cum laude, from William Mitchell College of Law, now Mitchell Hamline School of Law.

Between the lines: - The profile shows how a niche legal specialty can become a growth engine when it combines deal work, regulatory knowledge and succession planning. - The focus on architecture and engineering firms suggests the market values attorneys who can handle both transactions and the operational risks tied to licensed professional services. - Generaux’s civic and alumni leadership also reinforces her visibility in Orange County beyond her law practice.

What's next: - Murtaugh LLP is likely to continue highlighting Generaux’s role in deal work and advisory services for design professional firms. - The award nomination may further expand her reach with clients, industry groups and regional business leaders. - More information is available in the firm's announcement and on Murtaugh LLP's social media.